Pancho Villa Didn’t Steal Columbus, NM’s Charging Power – CleanTechnica

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Over 100 years ago, automobiles of all kinds were in their infancy. Electric vehicles had some serious drawbacks in the range department, but did pretty good considering the battery technology of the day. But, gas-powered cars were even worse, requiring a manual crank to get them started that would keep many women from driving and could easily break a man’s arm if he didn’t let go at the right time. It was only when a merger of that technology happened (the electric starter) that ICE vehicles dominated and drove EVs out of the market.

But, what you might not be aware of is when ICE vehicles first went to war. You might think the first wartime vehicles appeared during World War I, but you’d be wrong. Before the United States entered the war, they got a dress rehearsal of sorts in southern New Mexico against an unlikely foe.

The year was 1916. The Mexican Revolution is raging. Pancho Villa, not just any revolutionary, but a figure who captured the imagination of many as a kind of Robin Hood of Mexico, had his eyes set on more than just political reform. He aimed to jolt the U.S. for supporting his rival, Venustiano Carranza, instead of remaining neutral in the conflict as promised previously.

On March 9th, around 4 a.m., Villa led around 480 to 500 men across the border and into small town of Columbus, New Mexico. The town, caught off guard, faced an attack not just on the nearby Camp Furlong military base but also saw Villa’s raiders looting stores, setting fires, and engaging in fierce combat with both U.S. soldiers and armed civilians.

The whole ordeal lasted about 90 minutes. When it was over, the tally was grim: 10 U.S. soldiers and 8 civilians dead, with many more injured. On Villa’s side, losses were heavy, with around 100 men killed or wounded by machine guns U.S. soldiers managed to fix and get into action. Tactically, it was a mess for Villa, but strategically? It lit a fire under the U.S. that led to serious military learning.

In an episode known as the Punitive Expedition, General John J. “Black Jack” Pershing led around 10,000 troops into Mexico to chase Villa. This wasn’t just any chase; it was the U.S.’s first use of cars and planes in combat, marking a significant shift in military tactics. The U.S. military went in not knowing how to effectively use these emerging technologies effectively in combat, but came back to the States with vital know-how and real world experience (even if they didn’t catch Villa).

Columbus, NM Today

While many people would have you believe that the border is a wild and dangerous place, it’s downright sleepy compared to 1916. There’s nobody leading hundreds of men across the border to take military action against us, so the worst border towns like Columbus ever sees is the occasional smuggler who gets violent or the occasional cop who falls to temptation and works with the cartels.

But, the lack of military battles doesn’t mean that the town isn’t on the cutting edge of another transportation innovation: rural EV charging!

Rural EV charging has been a real problem in the United States and continues to be challenging in many areas. For travelers seeking to drive across the bottom edge of New Mexico from El Paso, TX to Rodeo, NM, options have been extremely limited. There are a few RV parks along that route where EV drivers occasionally stay overnight to get a charge, including one at Pancho Villa State Park, a place dedicated to telling the history of the Villa Raid and the Punitive Expedition.

That’s why EV drivers in the region have been a little excited after news of a new DC fast charge station in the town. The State of New Mexico used some of the money from the Dieselgate settlement to install two fast chargers in the town, which would be a great help to travelers in rural New Mexico and for people traveling into Mexico. A 62.5 kW station isn’t much these days, but for people traveling in the area, it’s a whole lot better than nothing.

It took a long time from announcement to installation, but even post-installation, things aren’t going great. On PlugShare, the station has a rating of 2, which is pretty abysmal considering that a station with a 10 rating can still be problematic. For many people, the station still cuts off after a limited time. Even when people get a charge, it’s limited to a lot less than 50 kW. If the station has been fixed up, too few people have gone there to test it.

The Old Catch-22

This brings us back to the “Catch-22” of EV charging. You see, EV drivers often avoid deep rural areas because the charging situation is shit. But, when businesses (both local and national) see that EV drivers don’t go there much, they figure that EV charging wouldn’t be used enough to be profitable. One problem reinforces the other, and it would stay that way endlessly if someone doesn’t break the cycle.

But, putting up a bunch of money and installing chargers doesn’t necessarily fix the problem. The charger has to both work well and it has to be known that the charger works well. At present, many people will simply avoid going to Columbus unless they have sufficient range to get back to I-10 and charge up again.

This is a real shame because there are some real hidden gems around the area. Not only can you learn about the history of the Pancho Villa Raid at the state park, but there are also opportunities to visit the border wall, see some of the darkest night skies in the United States, learn about more ancient Native American history, see the end of the Continental Divide Trail, and a lot more.

We can’t honestly expect the vast majority of people to get an EV if all of these things aren’t readily accessible to them. Sure, few people actually come to the area to see all of this, but it’s something everyone expects to be able to do because they can do it in their ICE vehicles today.

Featured image: a photo from the aftermath of the Pancho Villa Raid (Public Domain).